y2 literacy and a crisis of confidence.

[littlemslazybones]

Could someone help me get my thoughts clear on this matter before I meet with ds1's teacher tomorrow?

My son is placed in the top group for literacy because, I suspect, his reading is fairly good for his age. Despite that his writing is poor and he struggles with this class. Initially he approached this lesson with low-level whining but is more and more likely to be in tears at the thought of this class. It has become beyond a joke and I've asked that he be moved into the middle group.

The teachers are happy with this solution because they can see from the work he is producing that he needs more help. The thing is, is that for my son at least, it's not the actual writing - in terms of physically getting the words down on page which he finds distressing. It's the silent, production of the thoughts where he becomes unravelled and that has him in tears in the morning.

How do I go about explaining this to the teacher without looking like a pfb twat (because they see the poor writing but not the difficulty he had to get to that point), how do I say it in such a way it makes sense and what can we do at home to help with this element. (I am demonstrating getting ideas down by starting with brainstorming but have no idea what they actually do in the classroom.

To make things worse (maybe just for me) his class teacher is not the same as his literacy teacher, who I have never met. Also, is it usual to have such a gulf between reading and composing/writing ability at this age.

Sorry for the length.

[Ferguson]

Retired male TA here - twenty years in KS1.

Re gulf between reading and writing: yes, it does happen, and I would think it's not uncommon, though some teachers may disagree.

I used to find with less-able Yr2 boys who couldn't/wouldn't write, that if I typed to their dictation they could write amazing stories, and were motivated to see their words appearing on the screen, almost as quickly as they said them, as I'm a trained touch-typist.

If you have a tape recorder or a phone he could use that will record his dictation, that might get him producing more.

Maybe get him re-telling stories he already knows, but trying to alter it in as many ways as he can think of. Some children just don't have much imagination I guess (others, of course, have too much!)

What sort of topics is he interested in? Maybe non-fiction writing is another possibility, describing his favourite toy or game in detail; a walk or park he enjoys; people he does, or doesn't like, and reasons why.

His reading may be OK, but is he understanding what he reads? Does he enjoy stories and books, or is it a 'chore' for him.

I wouldn't worry too much about trying to convince the teacher where the problems lie, just leave it at him not being very good at it; and sometime, if you can, get to meet the literacy teacher.

Very likely other people will join the thread with more suggestions before too long.

[ChazsBrilliantAttitude]

Does he need some sort of framework on which to build his story. I'm sure they have been given guidence on beginning middle and end but maybe he needs a sheet in front of him with some cues to help him.